NPIEL

Consumer Behavior
Vinod Gupta School of Management

Module - 7
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR

Sangeeta Sahney
Assistant Professor,
Vinod Gupta School of Management
Indian Institute of Technology
Kharagpur, India
Email. sahney@vgsom.iitkgp.emit.in

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MODULE 7.7:
OPINION LEDERSHIP (1 hour)

MODULE 7.7: OPINION LEADERSHIP(1 hour)

7.7.1 Word-of-Mouth Communication and Opinion Leadership
7.7.2 Opinion Leaders and Opinion Receivers/Seekers
7.7.3 Role played by Opinion Leaders
7.7.4 Motives Behind Opinion Leadership:
7.7.5 Dynamics of Opinion Leadership Process
7.7.6 Measurement of Opinion Leadership
7.7.7 Traits and Characteristics of Opinion Leaders
7.7.8 Relevance of Opinion Leadership for a Marketer

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LESSON – 38
OPINION LEDERSHIP

Instructional Objectives:
After completion of this lesson, the student shall know about:
7.7.1 Word-of-Mouth Communication and Opinion Leadership
7.7.2 Opinion Leaders and Opinion Receivers/Seekers
7.7.3 Role played by Opinion Leaders
7.7.4 Dynamics of Opinion Leadership Process
7.7.5 Dynamics of Opinion Leadership Process
7.7.6 Measurement of Opinion Leadership
7.7.7 Traits and Characteristics of Opinion Leaders
7.7.8 Relevance of Opinion Leadership for a Marketer

7.7.1 WORD-OF-MOUTH COMMUNICATION AND OPINION LEADERSHIP:

The previous lesson has dealt elaborately on word-of-mouth communication, and the
important role that it plays in the marketing of goods and services. Mention has also been
made about Opinion Leaders who act as a vital link between the marketer and consumers.
This lesson deals with the Opinion Leaders and the Opinion Leadership process in greater
detail.
As explained earlier, the informal interpersonal communication that occurs
between two people is referred to as Word-of-Mouth (WOM) communication. In terms of
marketing, such a conversation relates to purchase activity and consumption behavior,
and thus pertains to anything and/or everything about product and service offerings. The
major characteristic features of WOM communication are:

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i) WOM is informal in nature.
ii) It is interpersonal and takes place between two or more people. The people could be
actual consumers or prospects; and are in no way representative of the marketer.
iii) Unlike commercial sources, the people involved in WOM communication do not have
ulterior or hidden motives of making a sale and earning profit.
Word-of-mouth communication generally relates to face-to-face informal
communication. However, it could also occur through a telephonic conversation or
chatting and blogging on the Internet. It could assume verbal and non-verbal forms (in
the form of behavior).
As people communicate with each other in a purchase decision making situation,
one of those involved in the informal communication process is able to influence the
attitude and purchase decision of others. He is an Opinion Leader and the process is
known as Opinion Leadership. Schiffman defines Opinion Leadership as “the process by
which one person (the opinion leader) informally influences the actions or attitudes of
others, who may be opinion seekers or merely opinion recipients”.
An identification of Opinion Leaders, their behavior and the very dynamics of the
Opinion Leadership process is helpful to the marketer. Once the marketers have
identified the Opinion Leaders, marketers can target their marketing efforts to them. They
can provide product information and advice to them and Opinion Leaders through WOM
can make the task easier for marketers.

7.7.2 OPINION LEADERS AND OPINION RECEIVERS/SEEKERS:

One of those people who indulge in informal product related communication,

usually provides information about a product or product category, whether it would
useful to buy, how it would be used etc. He would also offer advice as to which of several
brands is the best and from where it should be bought. This person is known as the
Opinion Leader and the process is known as Opinion Leadership.
In some cases, the Opinion Leader just likes to talk and discuss about a product or
service category. He voluntarily provides information about the product and product

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category and/or about brands. The people who form the audience and listen to him are
called Opinion Receivers.
In other cases, prior to a purchase, people could approach an Opinion Leader and
request him for information and advice about the product category and/or about brands.
That is, the Opinion Leader would provide information only when asked for. In such
cases, the persons (audience/or the receiver of information) are known as Opinion
Seekers. Individuals who on their own seek information and advice about products and
brands are called Opinion Seekers.
There is a two-way exchange of information, and both opinion leaders and
opinion receivers/seekers interact with each other. Opinion leaders provide the
receivers/seekers with product information, advice, and relate to them their experiences.
In return for this, they gather more information, personal opinion and personal
experiences from the receivers/seekers.
Opinion Leaders are not generic in nature; they are specific to a product category
and the Opinion Leader for a product category would become an Opinion
Receiver/Seeker for another product category.

7.7.3 ROLE PLAYED BY OPINION LEADERS:

Opinion leaders play a key role and act as a vital role between the marketer and
the consumer. He communicates informally about product and service offerings and/or
brands; he gives product news and advice to consumers (current and potential) and also
narrates his personal experience to others. The major roles played by opinion leaders are,
i) authority figure; ii) trend setter; and iii) local opinion leader. These roles are discussed
as follows:

i) Authority figure: The role that is played by an Opinion Leader when he gives
product news and advice, and also narrates his personal experiences to consumers, is
known as the authority figure role. By providing product news and advice, as also
narrating his personal experiences, he helps current and potential consumers satisfy their
needs and wants.

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Opinion leaders are highly involved with a product category. They gather
information about new, technically complex and risky products by reading about them in
newspapers, journals and magazines (also special interest magazines). They attend
product launch parties, trade fairs and trade shows, conferences and symposiums etc.
They also enter into conversations and discussions with subject experts, researchers,
scientists, and even innovators. Innovators provide them with accounts of their first hand
experience. It is noteworthy that sometimes even Opinion Leaders act as innovators and
are the first to try out a new product offering in the product category of their interest.
Opinion Leaders are said to be performing the authority figure role as they act as
experts and authorities for a particular product category. They have knowledge, expertise
and experience with the product category. They are aware of the various evaluative
criteria on which the product and service offerings should be assessed and they are also
aware of the decision rules that need to be applied to make a final purchase decision.
Opinion Leaders are also aware of the various brands that are available, and the value
associated with each. So they are in the best position to provide information and advice to
consumer as to i) whether to make a purchase? ii) If yes, which brand to buy? Because of
this role that they perform as experts, consumers prefer approaching them for information
and advice. This helps the consumers i) reduce the level of physical and cognitive effort
associated with a purchase; ii) reduce the level of risk associated with the purchase.
Opinion Leaders enjoy playing this role because of the prestige and pride
associated with it. As mentioned above, they may voluntarily play this role and enjoy
talking about a product category, or they may be approached and requested for it by the
consumers. In any case, they derive pleasure and pride in acting out the expert’s role.
Opinion Leaders are specific to a product or service category. It is very rare that
an Opinion Leader is an expert or authority for more than one product category. This is
because of the fact that it would involve a lot of effort and would difficult for a person to
be well informed and educated about any and every product category. Further, the
expertise would be maintained only if it is an ongoing effort of information gathering,
storage and retention. It would involve a huge amount of effort to develop and maintain
expertise in more than one or few areas. Thus, as an expert, Opinion Leaders specialize in
one product category. However, Opinion Leadership could tend to overlap across certain

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combinations of interest areas, i.e., Opinion leaders in one product category can often be
Opinion Leaders in related areas, like kitchen ware and household goods, fashion apparel
and cosmetics, computers and mobiles, tourism and travel.

ii) Trend setter: Opinion Leaders act as trend setters. They are inner oriented and do
not bother about what others in the society say or do. They are also innovative and often
go in for purchase of new product and service offerings (of their interest category) and
through the purchase and usage, they set the trend.
Opinion Leaders play the trend setter role when they narrate accounts of their
personal experiences to others to copy and emulate. In other words, if they purchase a
new innovative product of their interest, they speak of their experience as acts of
behavior that the audience (opinion receivers/opinion seekers) should emulate.
Unlike the authority role (of providing news and advice), they emphasize more on
narrating their personal experiences. Rather than knowledge and expertise being the
source of credibility, it is the personal experience that provides credibility.
Once a trend is set by trend setters, people begin to copy them. In fact they act as
a reference group for others who want to use the same product and service offerings that
are used by former. As trend setters, Opinion Leaders could belong to membership or
non-membership reference groups.

iii) Local Opinion Leader: People like to behave like others in their reference groups.
They desire social approval from contactual (membership) and aspirational (non-
membership) groups. People from such groups directly or indirectly provide information
and advice that helps consumers to make purchase decisions, and buy such goods and
services and/or brands that the contactual and aspirational groups approve off.
Opinion Leaders are said to act a local opinion leaders when a) they constitute a
person’s positive reference group; and b) they provide information about such product
and service offerings and/or brands that help satisfy their needs and wants of the
consumer group in a manner that is consistent with group values and norms. As local
opinion leaders, they provide knowledge and advice, and narrate personal experiences
about product and service offerings. Their credibility lies in the fact that as they belong to

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the same group as others who approach them, they are able to advise on the “good” or
“bad”, and thereby guarantee social approval and appreciation.

7.7.4 MOTIVES BEHIND OPINION LEADERSHIP:

Both Opinion Leaders and Opinion Receivers/seekers have their own reasons for
providing information and receiving/seeking product information and advice. Opinion
Leaders give product related information and advice sometimes voluntarily on their own
and sometimes when are approached and asked for. Similarly Opinion Receivers/Seekers
request for information or listen with listen with patience to all that the Opinion Leader
has to say. There are various reasons as to why such communication exchange takes
place between Opinion Leaders and Opinion Receivers/Seekers, be they relatives,
friends, acquaintances or even strangers. Some of the reasons why Opinion Leaders
provide information and why Opinion Receivers/Seekers receive or seek information and
advice are discussed below. These explain the motives behind the Opinion Leadership
process.

i) Why do Opinion Leaders provide information?

- Opinion Leaders like to give product news, provide expert advice and also love to share
their experiences with others. This is because they are involved and interested in a
product or service category, and love to talk about it (product involvement).
- WOM communication gives them an opportunity to talk about their interests to others.
Further they may feel so positively and favorably or negatively and unfavorably about a
product and/or brand that they feel like telling about it to others (product involvement,
self involvement and social involvement)
- As they possess knowledge, expertise and experience with a product category, they feel
important and powerful when people approach them for information and advice. It
confers upon them a sense of superiority or special status over others. They take pride in
providing information and advice (self gratification, power and pride). They also feel that
others to whom they have given information and advice on new products or services have
bought them because of them.

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- They may be genuinely be benevolent and generous, and out of altruistic concerns may
like to help others, especially family, friends, relatives and neighbours (selfless motive:
social involvement).
- Opinion Leaders may be also trying to reduce their own level of post-purcahse cognitive
dissonance (self-interest).
- Interestingly true, many provide information as a) they may be wanting to try out a new
product or service offering after someone else buys and uses it first; or b); or c) they may
themselves be trying to reassure themselves of their own purchase decision by
recommending it to others; and d) they may be dissatisfied with a purchase and like to
complain about the purchase of the product and service and/or brand and/or company
and/store from where it has been purchased
ii) Why do Opinion Receiver/Seekers request for information?
- Opinion Receivers/Seekers gather information so that they can make the right purchase
decision, with respect to the right product and service offering, the right brand, at the
right price, from the right store and at the right time. Especially in cases of high
involvement products, a person may be less knowledgeable and less involved and can
take advice from someone who is more experienced and knowledgeable for that product
category.
- They obtain information about new-product or new-usage.
- It reduces the physical and cognitive effort that the Opinion Receivers/Seekers has to
take to gather information, evaluate alternatives and take the right decision. They also
save on time required to gain information about product and the varying brands.
- Product knowledge and advice reduces the level of uncertainty associated with a
purchase. It helps them reduce the perceived risk as they are able to gain product and/or
brand knowledge from experts, who are also many a times innovators and first-time users
of the product (Opinion Leaders are innovative by nature and this has been discussed in
the previous lesson).
- They prefer word-of-mouth communication over other marketing communication as
they believe that while the latter have an ulterior interest in making sales, the former is
more credible with no ulterior motives.

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- People also turn to Opinion Leaders so as to confirm their purchase decisions. This is
particularly true for high involvement products, as also for products that need social
approval and/or match social class and social status.

7.7.5 DYNAMICS OF OPINION LEADERSHIP PROCESS:

The Opinion Leadership process is highly dynamic in nature. Opinion Leaders

communicate informally about product and service offerings and/or brands. They offer
product information and advice, and narrate experiences. They are not generic in nature;
they are specific to a product category, and an expert in one product category would not
be an expert for another product category. Thus, a person may be an Opinion Leader for
a product category and an Opinion Receiver for another. The dynamic nature of Opinion
Leadership is discussed as follows:

Opinion Leaders provide product information, advice and narrate

experiences: Opinion Leaders communicate informally about product and service
offerings and/or brands; they give product news and advice to consumers (current and
potential) and also narrate their personal experience to others. As such they act as
authority figures, trend setters and local opinion leaders.

Opinion Leaders provide both positive and negative information: Opinion

Leaders provide both favorable and unfavorable information about product and service
offerings and/or brands, and this adds to their credibility. Compared to positive and
neutral information and/or evaluation, the impact of negative information and/or
evaluation is much greater and has a bigger impact on Opinion Receivers/Seekers. Thus,
they would avoid such product and service offerings and/or brands that are spoken
negatively by Opinion Leaders.

Opinion Leaders are influential and persuasive: Opinion Leaders are highly
influential and very effective at persuading people around them. They are credible
informal sources of product knowledge, information and advice. People look up to them
for advice and they are good at influencing the former because of the following:

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- they are regarded as subject experts, i.e. it is believed that opinion leaders are
knowledgeable and experienced about a product or service category.
- since they receive no monetary compensation, their information, advice, opinion and
experiences about a product or service category, are perceived as genuine, objective and
unbiased.
- they are thought to have no selfish, ulterior or hidden motives, and this adds to their
credibility (unlike a marketer who wants to make a sale).
- because they have no self-interest, their advice is regarded as being in the best interests
of others (potential and actual consumers).

Opinion Leaders are not generic in nature: They are specific to a product or
service category, and possess expertise and specialization in it. Because of the in depth
knowledge they have about the product category, people approach them for information
and advice for that product or service category.
It is important to distinguish between Opinion Leaders and Market
Mavens. There are some people who seem to know about everything and offer their
advice about anything and everything. Such people are called market mavens. They are
different from Opinion Leaders in the sense that actually they do not provide information
about a product or service category. They provide information, advice and narrate
experiences of general buying and consumption behavior. They also seem to know less
intensive about a product or service category, and more extensively about many products
and services. They know more about what should be bought, how should it be used, when
it should be bought, where it would be available (retail outlets) etc. In a nutshell, they
possess more of general knowledge or market expertise.

Opinion Leaders could also become Opinion Receivers/Seekers: As

explained above, Opinion Leaders are category specific. They are experts in one
product/service category, and act as Opinion Leaders. However, when it comes to another
product/service category, they may become Opinion Receivers/Seekers. They may even
seek information from people to whom they had given information earlier about another

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product category. Thus, the roles may get reversed from Opinion Leaders to Opinion
Receivers/Seekers in the context of other product/service categories.
Sometimes a person may become an Opinion Receiver/Seeker for the same
product also. This is when he is in a product-related conversation/discussion with a
Opinion Receiver/Seeker who is more informed, enlightened and updated with
information product knowledge. This information then adds to the Opinion Leaders’
knowledge database in his memory (adds to his associated network).

7.7.6 MEASUREMENT OF OPINION LEADERSHIP:

As Opinion Leaders act as a vital link between marketers and consumers, the
marketers are always concerned with i) the identification of such people in a social
structure who are Opinion Leaders; ii) the identification of people who have the potential
to become Opinion Leaders; and iii) the measurement of Opinion Leadership.
In order to measure Opinion Leadership, it is essential that Opinion Leaders with
respect to the product/service category are identified. It is also important that people who
have the potential to become Opinion Leaders are also identified. There are three ways in
which Opinion Leaders can be identified; these are listed as follows:
a) marketers directly ask the consumers whether they are Opinion Leaders.
b) they ask a subject expert to identify who the Opinion Leaders are.
c) they study the communication patterns and flows among consumers, interpret the
dynamics and identify the leaders
These methods, in particular the third one help marketers to identify the traits and
characteristics that make up an Opinion Leader for a type of product or service category.
It also helps the marketer understand the behavior of Opinion Leaders and the dynamics
underlying the Opinion Leadership process. Marketers are interested in identifying,
measuring and analyzing the impact of the opinion leadership process on consumption
patterns and consumption behavior.
An understanding of the traits and characteristics of Opinion Leaders, their
behavior and the very dynamics of the Opinion Leadership process is helpful to the
marketer. Once the marketers have identified the general traits and characteristics of
Opinion Leaders, they can target their marketing efforts, particularly the communication

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programme at all such consumers who possess such traits and characteristics. Marketers
would provide them with information about the product and product category, about the
brand, about the usage, its benefit and utility etc. They would also tell them about the
various attributes and features, the price and the availability. Once such people (Opinion
Leaders or those who have the potential to become Opinion Leaders) are exposed with
such a message, they would in turn talk about it to others in their social group. This
would make the job easier for a marketer.
All this would ultimately lead to an informal spread of product news, advice and
experiences. As has been discussed earlier, WOM communication has a greater impact on
consumption behavior as it is regarded as being credible, without any hidden/ulterior
motives.

As far as measurement of Opinion Leadership is concerned, researchers make use

of various methods. According to Rogers, there are four basic techniques for measuring
Opinion Leadership, viz., i) the self-designating method; ii) the sociometric method; iii)
the key informant method; and iv) the objective method. Each of these is explained and
critically assessed as follows:
i) The self-designating method: A marketing survey is conducted and people are
asked a series of questions to determine the degree to which they behave as Opinion
Leaders. Questions pertain to:
a) the extent to which they have given information and advice about a product/service
category and/or brands to others in the social system
b) how often they have been able to influence the purchase decisions about others.
c) how often they have been approached by others for information and advice about that
particular product/service category

Advantages: It is easy to include and apply in market research questionnaires. It helps

measure an individual’s perception and assessment about his/her actual Opinion
Leadership and related capacities.
Disadvantages: As the technique is based on self assessment and evaluation, it could be
to lead to over-estimation of self and thus, suffer from bias. People could portray

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themselves as being “knowledgeable and important advisors” to others when it comes to
making purchase decisions. It is also difficult to assess the outcome of the informal
communication in terms of knowledge and advice. While a person may report that he
provides information and advice, and helps people make purchase decisions, it may not
be essential that the receivers may be actually using this information and advice. Thus,
success of the technique would depend on the objectivity with which a respondent can
identify, assess and report his personal influence.

The final assessment needs to be made by the marketer. The marketer must
understand the degree of relevance the Opinion Receivers/Seekers attach to the
information and advice that they receive from the various so called Opinion Leaders. This
assessment would help the marketer identify who among the many are Opinion Leaders
and who are not.

ii) The sociometric method: The sociometric method of measuring Opinion

Leadership basis itself on the study of the social system, and particularly the
communication patterns and flows to identify those to give information and advice as act
as Opinion Leaders. Researchers examine complete patterns of informal information
flows among consumers of a particular product/service category, and identify those who
provide information to others as Opinion Leaders.
While the technique makes use of the analysis of the communication flow, it also
uses questionnaires that are administered to people in a social system. People in a social
system are asked to identify:
a) those people to whom they have given information and advice about a product/service
category. In case the respondent identifies one or many people to whom he has provided
information and advice, he is regarded as an Opinion Leader. Researchers could cross-
examine by contacting and questioning the Receiver/Seekers of information and
confirming from them.

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b) those people to whom they have gone for information and advice about a product or
service category and/or brand. Her again, researchers could cross-examine by contacting
and questioning the Opinion Leaders and confirming from them.

Advantages: The technique can meet tests of validity and reliability. Chances of
misconception and bias are less.
Disadvantages: It is a costly in terms of both money and time. In order to obtain results
that are valid and reliable, it requires intensive and extensive data, i.e. a large amount of
information from a large sample of respondents. This could be expensive and time
consuming. The analysis could also be complex and would require experts in the area.

iii) The key informant method: Based on careful observation and analysis of social
communication, key informants in a social system are identified. These key informants
are asked to identify and/or designate individuals in the social group who are Opinion
Leaders or who are most likely to be Opinion Leaders.
The key informants are those who are aware about the communication patterns in
a social environment and able to provide a fair and impartial assessment of these patterns.
They may or may not be a member of such group(s); they may be active participants or
passive observers. In this way (where an expert is asked to identify Opinion Leaders), the
technique is better than the self-designating method (where a person is asked to assess
himself as an Opinion Leader).

Advantages: This is relatively less expensive and time consuming, as compared to the
sociometric method. The study is based on a chosen few rather than large samples in the
self-designating and sociometric methods.
Disadvantages: If informants are not carefully chosen, they may provide wrong
information.

iv) The objective method: The objective method is based on simulation. It identifies
and measures Opinion Leadership by placing people in controlled environments (just as
controlled experiments). People are chosen, given information about new products and

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service categories, and the asked to act out as Opinion Leaders. The resulting “web” and
“patterns” of informal interpersonal communication regarding the relevant product or
service category are traced and analyzed. The technique thus measures the results of their
efforts and assesses how successful their impact is on consumption behavior.

Advantages: It measures people’s abilities to provide news and advice and influence
purchase decisions in controlled environments.
Disadvantages: It is time consuming as it requires setting up of experimental designs. It is
a complex process and requires subject experts and trained psychologists.

7.7.7 TRAITS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF OPINION LEADERS:

As discussed above, an understanding of the traits and characteristics of Opinion

Leaders is helpful to marketers so that they can target their marketing efforts, particularly
their promotional efforts and their communication programme at all such consumers.
Marketers assume that given their characteristics, the Opinion Leaders would indulge in
WOM communication and spread product news, advice and experiences. They would
successfully be able to influence consumption patterns and consumption behavior of
others.
Consumer researchers and market practitioners have successfully identified traits
and characteristics of Opinion Leaders, and developed their profile. Such traits and
characteristics are discussed as follows:
i) Opinion leaders possess high levels of involvement and interest in a specific product or
service category. They gather information from various sources (print, electronic and
audio visual, internet and websites etc.) about product development, and are updated
about information. They have greater interest for exposure to media and news specifically
relevant to their subject areas of interest and specialization. They like to read and hear
more about what interests them. The information search is ongoing because of the level
of interest that they possess.

ii) They are subject experts and have tremendous knowledge about the specific product or
service category. They are well-informed about product attributes and features, benefits

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and utility, knowledge about brands, price and availability. Because of their knowledge
and expertise, people turn to tem for advice. They are authority figures and provide
information, advice and narrate experiences to Opinion Receiver/Seekers.
iii) They are product or service category specific; a person who is an opinion leader in a
particular product/service category would be an Opinion Receiver/Seeker for another.
However, Opinion Leadership could tend to overlap across certain combinations of
interest areas, i.e., Opinion leaders in one product category can often be Opinion Leaders
in related areas, like kitchen ware and household goods, fashion apparel and cosmetics,
computers and mobiles, tourism and travel.

iv) In most cases, Opinion Leaders are also consumer innovators. Because of their
interest in a product or service category, they have a tendency to purchase a new product
offering as soon as it is launched in the market. Also, because with their fist hand
experience with the product, they speak with authority and experience. They act as trend
setters and are in a better position to give advice and convince others to make a purchase.

v) Opinion Leaders also possess certain personal characteristics; by nature, they are self-
confident and gregarious. Because of the knowledge and experience that they possess,
they are self-confident. They are extroverts and sociable by nature, who enjoy being in
company of others, love talking to others and provide them with product news and advice
and share their experiences.

vi) As far as characteristics related to social class and social standing are concerned,
Opinion leaders generally belong to the same socioeconomic group as Opinion
Receivers/Seekers. The reasons for this are quite logical. First, Opinion Leaders indulge
in informal communication, and the Receivers/Seekers would in most cases be their own
friends, neighbours, peers and colleagues. It is with them and other members of their
social class that a regular exchange of information takes place, and it is to them that they
would give information and advice and share their experiences. Secondly, it is only when
there is a match of economic class, that Opinion Receivers/Seekers would approach an
Opinion Leader. This is because there would be a better level of comfort and

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understanding between the two. Opinion Leaders would recommend a product and/or
brand that he has been able to monetarily afford and use and it would also be something
that the Receivers/ Seekers can also afford. Thirdly, the Receivers/Seekers desire social
approval and social approval and acceptance, and thus all the more reason that he
approaches someone from his socio-economic class.

7.7.8 RELEVANCE OF OPINION LEADERSHIP FOR A MARKETER:

The study of informal interpersonal communication, particularly through Opinion

Leadership holds relevance for a marketer. The Opinion Leader provides product news,
advice and experience to Opinion Receivers/Seekers (potential consumers). This reduces
the latter’s physical and cognitive effort associated with the purchase decision making
process. It also reduces their level of perceived risk. Marketer realize that Opinion
Leaders are regarded as credible sources of WOM communication. They also
successfully exert tremendous amount of influence on consumers' choice and preferences
as also the actual purchase activity. Thus, the study of Opinion Leadership holds
relevance for a marketer.
As Opinion Leaders act as a vital link between marketers and consumers, the
marketers should concern themselves with the identification of Opinion Leaders, as also
the identification of those who have the potential to become Opinion Leaders. For this
they need to have an understanding of the traits and characteristics that make up an
Opinion Leader for a type of product or service category. Once they have identified the
general traits and characteristics of Opinion Leaders, they can target their marketing
efforts, particularly the communication programme at all such consumers. Marketers
would provide them with information about the product and product category, about the
brand, about the usage, its benefit and utility etc. They would also tell them about the
various attributes and features, the price and the availability. Once such people (Opinion
Leaders or those who have the potential to become Opinion Leaders) are exposed with
such a message, they would "carry around the word" to the masses, by talking about it to
others in their social group. This would make the job easier for a marketer.
Marketers often attempt to encourage Opinion Leadership through their marketing
strategies:

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- through schemes like “share you experiences”, “tell others that you like our brand”, etc.,
marketers encourage consumers to discuss their experiences with others (eg. Electronic
goods etc).
- through showing advertisements that portray product/service informal discussions about
products/services amongst people (eg. health drinks, skin and hair care products etc.).
It needs to be mentioned here that WOM communication is difficult to manage
and control. When a person is satisfied with the purchase of a product and/or brand, he
would speak in favor of it. On the other hand, when he is dissatisfied with the purchase
and the usage, he would speak unfavorably about it to others. Similarly, Opinion Leaders
provide information that could be both favorable and unfavorable to a product or service
category and/or brand. Negative remarks could also arise in the form of rumors,
especially with new product categories. Needless to say, quite logical that the unfavorable
or negative information has a deeper and profound effect. To counter this, marketers are
desirous of handling customer relations in a better manner, and have introduced help lines
and toll free numbers.
Marketers should also measuring and analyze the impact of the Opinion
Leadership process on consumption patterns and consumption behavior. This would help
him understand those amongst Opinion Leaders who are genuine and powerful and those
who are fake and superficial. This is because they can then focus more on the former than
on the latter.
All this would ultimately lead to an informal spread of product news, advice and
experiences. As has been discussed earlier, WOM communication has a greater impact on
consumption behavior as it is regarded as being credible, without any hidden/ulterior
motives.

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REFERENCES FOR FURTHER READING:

1. Loudon, D.L. and Bitta A.J. Della, Consumer Behavior, Fourth Edition, 2002,
Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi.
2. Peter, P.J. and Olson, J.C., Consumer Behavior and Marketing Strategy, Seventh
Edition, 2005, McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
3. Rogers Everett M., Diffusion of Innovations, Third Edition, 1995, The Free Press,
a division of Simon & Schuster.
4. Schiffman, L.G. and Kanuk, L.L., Consumer Behavior, Eight Edition, 2004,
Prentice Hall, India.
5. Wells W.D. and Prensky, D., Consumer Behavior, 1996, John Wiley & sons, Inc.

FAQS (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS):

Ques 1 Discuss the Motives behind the Opinion Leadership Process.

Ans 1 Both Opinion Leaders and Opinion Receivers/seekers have their own reasons for
providing information and receiving/seeking product information and advice. Opinion
Leaders give product related information and advice sometimes voluntarily on their own
and sometimes when are approached and asked for. Similarly Opinion Receivers/Seekers
request for information or listen with listen with patience to all that the Opinion Leader
has to say. There are various reasons as to why such communication exchange takes
place between Opinion Leaders and Opinion Receivers/Seekers, be they relatives,
friends, acquaintances or even strangers. Some of the reasons why Opinion Leaders
provide information and why Opinion Receivers/Seekers receive or seek information and
advice are discussed below. These explain the motives behind the Opinion Leadership
process.

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Opinion Leaders provide information because of the following reasons:
- Opinion Leaders like to give product news, provide expert advice and also love to share
their experiences with others. This is because they are involved and interested in a
product or service category, and love to talk about it (product involvement).
- WOM communication gives them an opportunity to talk about their interests to others.
Further they may feel so positively and favorably or negatively and unfavorably about a
product and/or brand that they feel like telling about it to others (product involvement,
self involvement and social involvement)
- As they possess knowledge, expertise and experience with a product category, they feel
important and powerful when people approach them for information and advice. It
confers upon them a sense of superiority or special status over others. They take pride in
providing information and advice (self gratification, power and pride). They also feel that
others to whom they have given information and advice on new products or services have
bought them because of them.
- They may be genuinely be benevolent and generous, and out of altruistic concerns may
like to help others, especially family, friends, relatives and neighbours (selfless motive:
social involvement).
- Opinion Leaders may be also trying to reduce their own level of post-purcahse cognitive
dissonance (self-interest).
- Interestingly true, many provide information as a) they may be wanting to try out a new
product or service offering after someone else buys and uses it first; or b); or c) they may
themselves be trying to reassure themselves of their own purchase decision by
recommending it to others; and d) they may be dissatisfied with a purchase and like to
complain about the purchase of the product and service and/or brand and/or company
and/store from where it has been purchased

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ii) Opinion Receiver/Seekers request for information because of the
following reasons:
- Opinion Receivers/Seekers gather information so that they can make the right purchase
decision, with respect to the right product and service offering, the right brand, at the
right price, from the right store and at the right time. Especially in cases of high
involvement products, a person may be less knowledgeable and less involved and can
take advice from someone who is more experienced and knowledgeable for that product
category.
- They obtain information about new-product or new-usage.
- It reduces the physical and cognitive effort that the Opinion Receivers/Seekers has to
take to gather information, evaluate alternatives and take the right decision. They also
save on time required to gain information about product and the varying brands.
- Product knowledge and advice reduces the level of uncertainty associated with a
purchase. It helps them reduce the perceived risk as they are able to gain product and/or
brand knowledge from experts, who are also many a times innovators and first-time users
of the product (Opinion Leaders are innovative by nature and this has been discussed in
the previous lesson).
- They prefer word-of-mouth communication over other marketing communication as
they believe that while the latter have an ulterior interest in making sales, the former is
more credible with no ulterior motives.
- People also turn to Opinion Leaders so as to confirm their purchase decisions. This is
particularly true for high involvement products, as also for products that need social
approval and/or match social class and social status.

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Ques 2 Critically assess the various techniques used to measure
Opinion Leadership.
Ans 2 Marketers are interested in identifying, measuring and analyzing the
impact of the opinion leadership process on consumption patterns and consumption
behavior. Researchers make use of various methods to measure Opinion Ledaership.
According to Rogers, there are four basic techniques for measuring Opinion Leadership,
viz., i) the self-designating method; ii) the sociometric method; iii) the key informant
method; and iv) the objective method. Each of these is explained and critically assessed
as follows:
i) The self-designating method: A marketing survey is conducted and people are
asked a series of questions to determine the degree to which they behave as Opinion
Leaders. Questions pertain to:
a) the extent to which they have given information and advice about a product/service
category and/or brands to others in the social system
b) how often they have been able to influence the purchase decisions about others.
c) how often they have been approached by others for information and advice about that
particular product/service category

Advantages: It is easy to include and apply in market research questionnaires. It helps

measure an individual’s perception and assessment about his/her actual Opinion
Leadership and related capacities.
Disadvantages: As the technique is based on self assessment and evaluation, it could be
to lead to over-estimation of self and thus, suffer from bias. People could portray
themselves as being “knowledgeable and important advisors” to others when it comes to
making purchase decisions. It is also difficult to assess the outcome of the informal
communication in terms of knowledge and advice. While a person may report that he
provides information and advice, and helps people make purchase decisions, it may not
be essential that the receivers may be actually using this information and advice. Thus,
success of the technique would depend on the objectivity with which a respondent can
identify, assess and report his personal influence.

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The final assessment needs to be made by the marketer. The marketer must
understand the degree of relevance the Opinion Receivers/Seekers attach to the
information and advice that they receive from the various so called Opinion Leaders. This
assessment would help the marketer identify who among the many are Opinion Leaders
and who are not.

ii) The sociometric method: The sociometric method of measuring Opinion

Leadership basis itself on the study of the social system, and particularly the
communication patterns and flows to identify those to give information and advice as act
as Opinion Leaders. Researchers examine complete patterns of informal information
flows among consumers of a particular product/service category, and identify those who
provide information to others as Opinion Leaders.
While the technique makes use of the analysis of the communication flow, it also
uses questionnaires that are administered to people in a social system. People in a social
system are asked to identify:
a) those people to whom they have given information and advice about a product/service
category. In case the respondent identifies one or many people to whom he has provided
information and advice, he is regarded as an Opinion Leader. Researchers could cross-
examine by contacting and questioning the Receiver/Seekers of information and
confirming from them.
b) those people to whom they have gone for information and advice about a product or
service category and/or brand. Her again, researchers could cross-examine by contacting
and questioning the Opinion Leaders and confirming from them.

Advantages: The technique can meet tests of validity and reliability. Chances of
misconception and bias are less.
Disadvantages: It is a costly in terms of both money and time. In order to obtain results
that are valid and reliable, it requires intensive and extensive data, i.e. a large amount of
information from a large sample of respondents. This could be expensive and time
consuming. The analysis could also be complex and would require experts in the area.

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iii) The key informant method: Based on careful observation and analysis of social
communication, key informants in a social system are identified. These key informants
are asked to identify and/or designate individuals in the social group who are Opinion
Leaders or who are most likely to be Opinion Leaders.
The key informants are those who are aware about the communication patterns in
a social environment and able to provide a fair and impartial assessment of these patterns.
They may or may not be a member of such group(s); they may be active participants or
passive observers. In this way (where an expert is asked to identify Opinion Leaders), the
technique is better than the self-designating method (where a person is asked to assess
himself as an Opinion Leader).

Advantages: This is relatively less expensive and time consuming, as compared to the
sociometric method. The study is based on a chosen few rather than large samples in the
self-designating and sociometric methods.
Disadvantages: If informants are not carefully chosen, they may provide wrong
information.

iv) The objective method: The objective method is based on simulation. It identifies
and measures Opinion Leadership by placing people in controlled environments (just as
controlled experiments). People are chosen, given information about new products and
service categories, and the asked to act out as Opinion Leaders. The resulting “web” and
“patterns” of informal interpersonal communication regarding the relevant product or
service category are traced and analyzed. The technique thus measures the results of their
efforts and assesses how successful their impact is on consumption behavior.

Advantages: It measures people’s abilities to provide news and advice and influence
purchase decisions in controlled environments.
Disadvantages: It is time consuming as it requires setting up of experimental designs. It is
a complex process and requires subject experts and trained psychologists.

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Ques 3 Discuss the traits and characteristics of Opinion Leaders.
Ans 3 Consumer researchers and market practitioners have successfully identified traits
and characteristics of Opinion Leaders, and developed their profile. Such traits and
characteristics are discussed as follows:
i) Opinion leaders possess high levels of involvement and interest in a specific product or
service category. They gather information from various sources (print, electronic and
audio visual, internet and websites etc.) about product development, and are updated
about information.
ii) They are subject experts and have tremendous knowledge about the specific product or
service category. They are well-informed about product attributes and features, benefits
and utility, knowledge about brands, price and availability.
iii) They are product or service category specific; a person who is an opinion leader in a
particular product/service category would be an Opinion Receiver/Seeker for another.
However, Opinion Leadership could tend to overlap across certain combinations of
interest areas, i.e., Opinion leaders in one product category can often be Opinion Leaders
in related areas, like kitchen ware and household goods, fashion apparel and cosmetics,
computers and mobiles, tourism and travel.
iv) In most cases, Opinion Leaders are also consumer innovators. Because of their
interest in a product or service category, they have a tendency to purchase a new product
offering as soon as it is launched in the market. They act as trend setters and are in a
better position to give advice and convince others to make a purchase.
v) Opinion Leaders also possess certain personal characteristics; by nature, they are self-
confident and gregarious. Because of the knowledge and experience that they possess,
they are self-confident. They are extroverts and sociable by nature, who enjoy being in
company of others, love talking to others and provide them with product news and advice
and share their experiences.
vi) As far as characteristics related to social class and social standing are concerned,
Opinion leaders generally belong to the same socioeconomic group as Opinion
Receivers/Seekers. The reasons for this are quite logical. First, Opinion Leaders indulge
in informal communication, and the Receivers/Seekers would in most cases be their own
friends, neighbours, peers and colleagues. It is with them and other members of their

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social class that a regular exchange of information takes place, and it is to them that they
would give information and advice and share their experiences. Secondly, it is only when
there is a match of economic class, that Opinion Receivers/Seekers would approach an
Opinion Leader. This is because there would be a better level of comfort and
understanding between the two. Opinion Leaders would recommend a product and/or
brand that he has been able to monetarily afford and use and it would also be something
that the Receivers/ Seekers can also afford. Thirdly, the Receivers/Seekers desire social
approval and social approval and acceptance, and thus all the more reason that he
approaches someone from his socio-economic class.

SELF EVALUATION TESTS/QUIZZES:

Section A True/false:
1. Opinion Leaders are specific to a product or service category.
2. Opinion Leaders provide only negative information about a product/service
category.
3. Sometimes a person may become an Opinion Receiver/Seeker for the same
product also.
4. In most cases, Opinion Leaders are also consumer innovators.
5. Opinion leaders generally belong to the same socioeconomic group as Opinion
Receivers/Seekers.

Section B Fill up the blanks:

1. ___________________act as a vital link between the marketer and consumers.
2. Opinion Leaders are said to be performing the ________________role as they act
as experts and authorities for a particular product category.
3. There are some people who seem to know about everything about the market and
offer their advice about anything and everything. Such people are called
_________________.
4. The _____________method is based on simulation. It identifies and measures
Opinion Leadership by placing people in controlled environments.

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Section C Multiple choice questions:
1. A marketing survey is conducted and people are asked a series of questions to
determine the degree to which they behave as Opinion Leaders. This is called the
________________ of measuring Opinion Leadership.
a) discussion method
b) interview method
c) self designating method
d) objective method

2 Which of the following statements about the sociometric method of measuring

opinion leadership is false?
a) It basis itself on the study of the social system, and particularly the communication
patterns and flows.
b) It also makes use of questionnaires that are administered to people in a social system.
c) The technique lacks validity and reliability.
d) It is a costly in terms of both money and time.

3. ______________ WOM information about a product category has a deeper and

profound effect on consumers.
a) Positive
b) Negative
c) Neutral
d) All of the above

Section D Short answers:

1. Define Opinion Leadership.
2. Mention the three roles played by Opinion Leaders.
3. Explain briefly the key informant method of measuring Opinion Leadership.
4. Give instances how marketers can encourage Opinion Leadership through their
marketing strategies.

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KEY

Section A True/false:
1. True 2. False 3. True 4. True 5. True
Section B Fill up the blanks:
1. Opinion Leaders 2. Authority figure 3. Market mavens
4. Objective
Section C Multiple choice questions:
1. c 2. c 3. b
Section D Short answers:
1. Opinion Leadership is defined as “the process by which one person (the opinion
leader) informally influences the actions or attitudes of others, who may be opinion
seekers or merely opinion recipients” (Schiffman).
2. The three roles are, i) authority figure; ii) trend setter; and iii) local opinion
leader.
3. Based on careful observation and analysis of social communication, key
informants in a social system are identified. These key informants are those who are
aware about the communication patterns in a social environment and able to provide a
fair and impartial assessment of these patterns. These key informants are asked to identify
and/or designate individuals in the social group who are Opinion Leaders or who are
most likely to be Opinion Leaders. As a technique, it is relatively less expensive and
time consuming. However, iIf informants are not carefully chosen, they may provide
wrong information.
4. Marketers can encourage Opinion Leadership through their marketing strategies.
Examples,
- through schemes like “share you experiences”, “tell others that you like our brand”, etc.,
marketers encourage consumers to discuss their experiences with others (eg. Electronic
goods etc).
- through showing advertisements that portray product/service informal discussions about
products/services amongst people (eg. health drinks, skin and hair care products etc.).
______________________________________________________________________

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